LeBron James' 24th-season patch to go into 1-of-1 Topps cards
Topps says James will wear a 24th-season jersey patch all of 2026-27, removed after each game, with certain patches going into 1-of-1 cards.
Topps has announced that LeBron James will sport a special patch marking his 24th season on his jersey for the entire 2026-27 campaign, and some of those patches are destined to be embedded in ultra-rare 1-of-1 trading cards.
The news
After every game, the patch will be removed from his jersey. Only some of them will go on to be set into 1-of-1 cards, and according to the announcement, more than one patch will go toward producing one-of-one cards.
Topps posted the announcement on October 20, 2026, the morning of James's season opener.
Patch and player details
According to reports, the artwork shows James in silhouette just after his pre-game chalk toss, positioned against a shape resembling a crest. Above a distinctly bigger red, white, and blue "24" are the words "NBA Seasons".
Reports say Fanatics is paying tribute to the 42-year-old forward by putting a patch on every game-used jersey he wears this season.
James reportedly starts 2026-27 with the Philadelphia 76ers. Since going No. 1 overall in the 2003 draft, he has already logged 23 seasons heading into this one. Vince Carter reportedly held the earlier record for the most NBA seasons played, at 22.
Why it matters
Debut-patch cards have become some of the hobby's biggest sales: a Cooper Flagg Rookie Debut Patch card reportedly sold for a little over $8 million, while the same card for Dylan Harper went for $2.88 million and Kon Knueppel's for $2.34 million.
On Fanatics Collect, an MVP dual patch autograph card featuring Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani is reportedly up for auction. It stood at $650,000 after 41 bids, with extended bidding opening the following day. Reportedly, MLB Debut Patches got their start in 2023.
TCGKing has already covered the record Flagg card, which will be a chase pull in PrizePicks' digital repack, in our earlier report.
What is still unknown
The announcement does not say how many 1-of-1 cards will be made, how many patches will go into cards, which product will carry them, or when they will be released.
What it means for players and collectors
- The patches are tied to individual games, since one is removed after each.
- Only certain patches become cards, so not every game's patch will reach a product.
- No release date or product has been announced.
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